On The Missional Church Movement and The Movement of God

One of the more fascinating movements in modern church history is the current movement of thousands of churches toward engaging their communities missionally. This meaning that they are living out the Gospel by meeting real needs of real people in the community surrounding their local church in order to meet them with the transformational Gospel of God.

In the past year, God has been so gracious to destroy my soul over and over again with the reality of the Gospel- that Jesus Christ, who knew no sin, became sin on my behalf and gave Himself up to horrific torture and belittlement on a cross that I might be reconciled to Him and live on mission with God's people for the ministry of reconciliation (2 Corinthians 5:17-21)- so much so that it feels as if I have been saved and called into fellowship and worship again. God has relentlessly pursued me and it is incredibly humbling to reflect on this reality. Sin dominates my heart and soul so much at times that it seems all I can see is darkness and insignificance. The Gospel of God dominates my soul even further with Grace and gives me hope, victory and freedom to live life on mission.

Out of this new and profound understanding of the Gospel that God has graciously hounded me with has been birthed a passion and zeal to live life on mission in order to engage lost and broken souls with this same Gospel. Many churches and Non-Profit organizations have formed and are moving forward globally with their entire vision being to engage broken and impoverished areas and people by meeting their needs and bringing hope to their communities. The success of these movements has gained much notoriety in the media and among other churches and social justice groups and has caused movement in many organizations. It has been very exciting and emotional to see so many churches, non-profits, and other organizations give generously to meet the needs of the broken and oppressed locally and globally. Personally, I have been torn apart by what God is doing around the world through His people and have been compelled to be a part of this movement as well and to make it a part of my DNA as a Christ follower.

There is one prayer I have- That as the Church Universal would pour our energy, vitality and soul into being a part of God's Movement in the world rather than the popular, cool, exciting, and successful movements of the day. This is not the first time we have seen a movement like this in America, and it will certainly not be the last. History is in many ways cyclical, and, should Christ delay His coming, the Church will slump back into a pit of apathy for the nations and the lost, and God will revive us again.

The idea is to live our lives devoted to His movement. Not our own. Let us plead with the Almighty, Sovereign, and Gracious God of the Universe that He would grant us the privilege of being apart of the movement He has summoned His people to- To join the Great Gospel of God (Mark 1:15) by engaging the world in The Restorative and Redeeming Gospel of Jesus Christ.